On Nationality

by David Miller

Nationalism is a dominating force in contemporary politics, but political philosophers have been markedly reluctant to discuss, let alone endorse, nationalist ideas. In this book, David Miller defends the principle of nationality, arguing that national identities are valid sources of personal identity; that we are justified in recognizing special obligations to our co-nationals; that nations have good grounds for wanting to be politically self-determining; but that recognizing the claims of nationality does not entail suppressing other sources of personal identity, such as ethnicity. Finally, he considers the claim that national identities are dissolving in the late twentieth century. This timely and provocative book offers the most compelling defense to date of nationality from a radical perspective.

Genres: Philosophy, Politics

221 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

David Miller is professor of political theory and official fellow, Nuffield College, Oxford. He is a fellow of the British Academy and the author or editor of fifteen books, including On Nationality and Principles of Social Justice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Mi...

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Reviews

[Tobey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It gives a very useful overview of the tensions between different cources of self-identity and social obligation: ethnicity, nationality, cosmopolitan views. Miller defends nationality against critics from the other two groups.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

read 4 class

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid stuff by Miller. he explains the role of nationality as an embracing loyalty that sits above all the lesser allegiances and identities we can have.